British ColumbiaA B.C. Green MLA bill this week aims to create vacancy control – a policy that would limit rent increases by tying them to a unit, not an individual tenancy. It’s generated support from poverty reduction and tenants’ rights groups – however, one economist warns it could spark unintended consequences for the housing market. The province briefly had vacancy control from 1973 to 1984Emily Fagan · CBC News · Posted: Oct 30, 2025 5:09 PM EDT | Last Updated: 4 hours agoListen to this articleEstimated 3 minutesGreen Party MLA Rob Botterell speaks at a press conference about his private member’s bill on vacancy control with B.C. Green Party Leader Emily Lowan and MLA Jeremy Valeriote. (Emily Fagan/CBC)B.C. Green Party MLA Rob Botterell says in a province where a third of residents are renters, it’s time to remove the ability for landlords to raise rent prices after evicting tenants.He introduced a private member’s bill this week which he says will address this challenge through instituting vacancy control — a policy that would limit rent increases by tying them to a unit, not an individual tenancy. “We know that B.C. is the eviction capital of Canada, and we also know that 85 per cent of those evictions do not involve any fault on behalf of the tenant,” said Botterell, who represents Saanich North and the Islands.“This legislation is to fix that, and to make sure that we have affordable rental accommodation in B.C. and that we eliminate that financial incentive.” This proposal has generated support from poverty reduction and tenants’ rights groups — however, one economist warns it could spark unintended consequences for the housing market. B.C. Green Party Leader Emily Lowan and MLA Rob Botterell are seen at a press conference on Oct. 30, 2025. Both argue that vacancy control would help renters in precarious situations. (Emily Fagan/CBC)To become law, the policy would need support of MLAs from across party lines, as the Greens currently only hold two seats out of 93 in the Legislature. B.C.’s Housing and Municipal Affairs Minister Christine Boyle said that the NDP under former premier John Horgan examined the possibility of vacancy control through its renters’ task force — but that option wasn’t recommended.“It’s not something that the government is looking at right now,” said Boyle, when asked if she would support the bill. “It’s something that we continue to monitor, alongside the significant actions that we’re taking to support renters and protect rental housing.”Housing Minister Christine Boyle said that vacancy control wasn’t recommended by a previously-convened renters’ task force, and the government wouldn’t support the Greens’ bill. (Ben Nelms/CBC)B.C. once had vacancy controlThe province previously had vacancy control measures introduced in 1973, though the policy was weakened over time before it was fully removed in 1984.B.C. Greens Leader Emily Lowan, who says she is a renter, called vacancy control a “common-sense tool” to fight back against a housing system “designed to squeeze renters for all that they’re worth.” “This bill from my B.C. Green colleagues will help stabilize the rents for British Columbians by blocking predatory landlords from hiking rents and evicting renters for profit,” she said.WATCH | Average asking rent in Vancouver dips slightly:Average asking rent in Vancouver dips in the past year, report findsThe average asking rent in Vancouver is down 8.2 per cent in the past year, according to a new report from Rentals.ca. As Meera Bains reports, the B.C. government has taken some credit but others say it’s not that simple.The B.C. Poverty Reduction Coalition and Together Against Poverty (TAPS) society released statements in support of the bill, which TAPS executive director Douglas King called an “important first step.”“At TAPS, we see daily how many evictions are driven by landlords seeking vacancy to raise rents. Vacancy control is the only way to stop this,” he said.“Landlords should have to provide clear, documented justification for rent increases, rather than automatically profiting from precarious housing conditions.”However, Thomas Davidoff, an associate professor of economics at UBC’s Sauder School of Business, said he sees rent control as a property tax — and one that could disincentivize landlords from renting out or building new units.While he agrees the policy could be a good one to combat evictions, he worries the demand for rentals under vacancy control could outpace the supply, and lead to landlords picking tenants on a preferential basis.“I would say just have higher property taxes, and redistribute income to those most in need,” said Davidoff.
B.C. Greens want to tie rent increases to units, not tenants but face uphill battle
